The Driving Lesson
by Guardian of Hope
Summary: Ziggy is learning to drive, but that's not the only lesson he's learning. post-After Hours, no 'ships.
1. Going To School

Disclaimer: I can't claim this...I just can't

A/N: I'm not sure where this came from, but it's funny.

* * *

Ziggy was officially convinced that Flynn had eyes in the back of his head, a conviction that was about to be reinforced, if Ziggy was right, in 5…4…3…2…1… "Ziggy," Flynn said calmly from where he was chopping apples for yet another smoothie; "if you touch my fruit, I will have to kill you."

Ziggy, perched on a stool beside the fruit bowl pulled his hand back and grinned at Flynn, "I wasn't going to do anything, Flynn, I just wanted to see if you had eyes in the back of your head."

Flynn tossed a grin over his shoulder, "That would be telling, Ziggy."

Dillon, seated at the end of the bar with his nose in a book snorted, "He's watching you through the reflection over there," he said, indicating one of the old computer screens; "Besides, you've been doing this all afternoon, it's a bit predictable." As Dillon flipped a page in his book he was clearly indifferent to Flynn's half-hearted glare.

Ziggy shrugged, "It's something to do while Doc and Summer are training." He tapped his fingers on the bar and wondered what they would do if he just got a notepad and pencil and started sketching right there. He didn't move, because he wasn't curious enough to offer that sort of insight to the three men, but still, he distracted himself enough that he was startled by a loud, echoing bang from behind him.

"Well," Scott said, leaning on the hood of the battered military jeep he'd pushed into the Garage with Flynn's help earlier that day, "if you're so desperate, there is something to be done."

"Sorry," Ziggy said, waving his hand at Scott "I make it a point not to volunteer. Yup, that's my rule, 'never volunteer."

"Didn't say you were volunteering," Scott replied, walking over to the bar, "Said it was something you need to do. Besides, you stole that from the military."

"I did not," Ziggy protested, "I've never met someone in the military before I met you. And I didn't forget to wash the dishes, and hey, I didn't break anything when I did it, either," Ziggy replied, "and I did my share of the laundry." He shot a look at Dillon, but the black ranger was steadily ignoring them.

"Not a chore," Scott said. He leaned against the bar and smiled, "You need to get a Corinth driver's license."

"No I don't," Ziggy replied; he tried to keep himself relaxed as a deep seated dread filled him, "besides, I can't pass a driving test."

"We're going to help you," Flynn said before starting the blender. After a bit he turned it off, "Sorry; anyway, you and I are going to go driving this afternoon. We'll see just how bad you are."

"You really don't want to do that," Ziggy replied. "this is a really bad idea." He looked to Dillon for support, just as the black ranger spoke up.

"What, can't you drive?" Dillon asked.

"Oh I can drive, never doubt that." Ziggy said, masking the faint feeling of betrayal he felt. Wasn't Dillon supposed to take his side against Scott and Flynn? "I just don't do well on driving tests. I failed five before…"

"Four," Scott said, "you failed four tests."

"Technically five, the instructor was in the hospital when Venjix attacked and never sent in the paperwork for a fifth fail." Ziggy replied. "Why can't I just ride with Dillon, or you, or Flynn? That seems to be working just fine right now."

"Dr K said you needed one, incase something happened, so you are getting a license." Scott replied. "I wouldn't cross her, Ziggy. She can be very insistent if she wants you to do something and you don't."

Flynn set a glass before Ziggy, "Drink up; we're going to be hitting the road pretty soon."

Ziggy shook his head, "I'll be back," he said, getting up and heading for the stairs.

---

It took Flynn threatening him to get Ziggy into the jeep, but he did so, and it was with an exaggerated care that Flynn got in beside him. "This is no joke," Ziggy muttered, "I'm worse than you can imagine."

"Just drive," Flynn ordered.

Dillon leaning against the trunk of his car watched as Ziggy started the jeep to a crazy number of backfires. He glanced at Scott, "Is that normal?" He asked.

"For the jeep, yeah," Scott replied. "Flynn and I have decided that it's possessed."

An awful shriek filled the air and both men looked at the jeep. Ziggy had run it up against the door on his way out, and the shattering of glass said that the mirror had paid the price. "Well, that's promising," Dillon said, straightening up, "I hope you weren't too attached to that jeep."


	2. Is That A Cow?

Disclaimer: Sure ain't mine

A/N: Having been writing and rewriting this story, I've found that the plot changed on me, from humor to angst. So I'm going with it. It won't be long, but it will be, uh, interesting, I guess. With a surprise guest too. (Not in this chapter...maybe the next one.)

* * *

Ziggy sighed as he rested his head on his knees, cradled in his arms. He'd warned them, driving, for Ziggy, was something he could do, as long as he wasn't being pressured by others. He didn't _want_ a driver's license, he got around just fine with Dillon and Flynn; there was no reason for him to drive. "Ziggy?" Flynn said.

Ziggy looked up to find Flynn offering him an ice cream sundae, "Thanks," Ziggy said, sitting up and resting his back against the fence behind the table.

"You do know that you aren't supposed to sit on the table," Flynn asked as he sat on a bench to eat his own sundae.

Ziggy paused in the act of pulling the spoon from his mouth, then finished the motion, "You do realize that I used to make these people pay the Cartel protection money, right? I'm no shoulder striker like Benny, but I got my point across easy enough. What are _they_ going to say to _me_?"

Flynn shook his head, "I thought you were an _ex_-con."

Ziggy stiffened, "Who I am, Flynn, is none of your business."

"Of course it is," Flynn said, "we're a team. We all look after each other, and something's been bothering you."

"Besides Scott yelling at me for my music," Ziggy replied, scooping up more ice cream, "I'm just peachy."

"You've been quiet lately," Flynn observed, "I was just wondering."

Ziggy shook his head, "I'm fine, Flynn, just like I usually am." He shifted slightly and heard the faint crackle of paper from his pocket.

"You haven't even gotten Scott mad enough to yell," Flynn said, "except for the whole music thing."

"I'm _fine,_" Ziggy replied, trying to relax his shoulders. "Just fine, in fact, better than ever; really, Flynn, glad you asked. How have you been lately?"

"Worried about you," Flynn replied, "you've been sarcastic and out of sorts since the Cartels got their hands on you. Not all the time, but if I'm noticing, you can bet Dr K and Scott have, and I _know_ that Summer's planning to catch up with you and get you to talk."

Ziggy slid off the table, "I'm fine, Flynn, drop it."

"Ziggy…" Flynn began.

Ziggy was moving before his brain fully registered the thought, his sundae met Flynn's mouth with a muffled shriek of surprise from Flynn and a crunch from the sundae container. Then Ziggy moved, nearly running across the outdoor eating area for the jeep, now missing a mirror and in possession of a large dent on the front from clipping a passing tree. He jumped into the jeep and turned the key in a single move, feeling a feral grin cross his face as the machine roared to life. He threw the car in reverse, and then peeled out of the parking lot in a cloud of smoke and the sound of squealing tires

_How dare they?_ Ziggy fumed as he roared onto the street and around the other drivers. _They have no right; or rather I apparently have no right to be anything other than Ziggy Grover, incompetent. They refuse to let me be anything else, because as soon as I stop talking, they start worrying._ He roared around another corner and outside the city to where the 'farms' were. Here, on the open lane, he was able to really coax the jeep into flying. _I wonder why Scott complains about this thing, I haven't had a non-Human error problem with it._ Ziggy thought as he took a hairpin turn on two wheels. Ahead of him, the road rose to cross the river, and he grinned, he was almost there. The jeep shot up and over the bridge, only to find the road blocked by a…a _cow_? Ziggy swore and yanked the wheel, aiming to go over the grassy embankment into the field to get around the loose animal.

A roaring explosion made the jeep jerk, and then crash into the guard rail. He soared into space as the jeep rolled out from under him. As he fell, Ziggy noted that he'd passed the river and would soon be impacting on the very hard ground, he held out his arms, as if to stop him from falling. Green light flared, seeming to come from his morpher and his mind at the same time. There was a crunching noise, an overwhelming pain, and then blackness.

ZDLZDLZDLZDLZDLZDL

When Scott and Dillon arrived in Flynn's car, he wasted no time in scrambling into the back seat, "He headed that way," Flynn said, pointing, "turned right at the light and I lost sight of him."

"That's ok," Scott said, pulling away from the ice cream shop; "Dillon's got a scanner. What happened?"

"I was trying to get him to open up and talk to me," Flynn replied as he buckled his seat belt. "It was weird; he was defensive before I could even really say anything. Next thing I know, he's creamed me with his sundae and vanishing in the jeep."

"His sundae?" Dillon repeated, "Huh, you really got to him, Ziggy's pretty possessive of food."

"I've noticed," Flynn replied.

The trio fell mostly silent as Scott drove; the only words were Dillon giving an occasional direction based on the scanner. Flynn just set back and half-closed his eyes, hoping that he could repair what ever had broken in the team dynamics. "Don't blame your self," Scott said, suddenly. "What ever Ziggy's problem is, you didn't cause it. In fact, I'd put you as the least likely source of trouble…except for the whole him eating your smoothie fruit."

"Aye," Flynn began.

"He's on the other side of this bridge," Dillon said, "and to the right."

Flynn sat up straight, but even he wasn't prepared for the scene they found. From the skid marks, Ziggy had swerved around something, only to hit the guard rail. Scott parked the Hummer and the trio flew out of the car. There, next to the river was Scott's jeep, lying on its side, having, apparently, rolled down the incline. "Ziggy!" Scott cried.

"Over there!" Dillon pointed.

Ziggy lay closer to the river, clearly thrown from the jeep. One leg was half drawn up his side and one arm was stretched out to the river. "I'll contact dad," Scott said as Dillon jumped over the barricade and started down the slope. "Flynn, please, make sure the jeep isn't going to explode or something."

Flynn, who had been froze jumped, "Ah, right," he said, and followed Dillon down the slope.

Scott turned and went back to the Hummer to get the radio, "Corinth Command, this is Ranger Red, I repeat, Corinth Command, this is Ranger Red, do you copy, over."

"Ranger Red, this is Corinth Command, I copy, over."

"Corinth Command, I need emergency personal to the…" he grabbed the scanner and flipped it to GPS mode, "Ashburn Road Bridge. I repeat, I need emergency personal to the Ashburn Road Bridge. Ranger Green is down. Over."

"This is Corinth Command; emergency personal is on its way. We had no warning of an attack, Ranger Red, over."

"Negative," Scott replied, "Ranger Green was involved in single vehicle accident. Over."

Scott's communicator went off, "Yeah?" He said.

"It's Dillon," Dillon replied, "he's alive, but I think he broke his shoulder, and possibly his leg, I'm no expert. He is also unconscious. I haven't tried moving him, and I won't. I'll just wait here."

"Ok, emergency personnel are coming soon."

"Not fast enough."

From the abrupt way Dillon's voice cut off, Scott didn't think he was meant to hear that last part. Scott leaned against the jeep, radio in one hand, communicator in the other and did something he hadn't done in many long years. He prayed.


	3. Waking Up

Disclaimer: No Ownership Here, sorry.

A/N: Just to note, I've never been a patient in a hospital, so here, this is my creative liscense.

* * *

Over the course of his life, Ziggy had awoken in various places, none of them, however, had ever been the hospital. And of all people, Ziggy had never expected to find Dillon watching over him. "What happened?" He asked.

Dillon jumped, "Ziggy! You're awake, let me call the nurse." He opened the door and vanished.

Ziggy groaned and closed his eyes, because a hospital could not mean good things. He thought back, remembering getting mad at Flynn and giving him an ice cream face wash, _I hope he forgives me,_ Ziggy thought. Then he'd stormed off, heading for his place and then, something had happened. "Welcome back, Mr. Grover," a friendly woman said.

Ziggy opened his eyes to find an older woman looking at him in a nurse's uniform. "Hi," Ziggy offered.

"Doctor Kelvin is on his way, I'm Nurse Rochelle," the lady smiled as she walked further into the room. "You have had quite the day, Mr. Grover."

"Please," Ziggy said, he cleared his throat, "it's Ziggy."

"Of course," Nurse Rochelle replied, as she picked up his chart and consulted it. "How are you feeling?"

"Thirsty," Ziggy replied, "head hurts."

"You're lucky you didn't crack your skull," Rochelle replied, "getting tossed from that jeep like you were."

The door opened and a tall, clean cut man in a doctor's coat stepped in. "Mr. Grover," he said, "I'm Dr Kelvin. I'm glad to see you awake."

"Me too," Ziggy replied, "and it's Ziggy, please."

"As you wish," Dr Kelvin replied. He accepted the chart from the nurse and glanced it over. "Well, the good news is, you'll be out of the hospital, if not back to action, faster than most. The way you access your biofield enable your natural healing to speed up at an exponential amount. If you had been morphed when you crashed, you probably would have simply walked away."

"What's the bad news?" Ziggy asked.

"Well, you'll be here for two days, just to make sure that everything is healing properly. Then you can return to the Ranger Base." Dr Kelvin replied. "Now, I'm going to authorize some minor pain killers if you need them, but except for possible headaches, I don't think you will."

"Yes," Ziggy said, "but I'd like one of those now please."

"Rochelle, can you see to that?" Dr Kelvin asked, turning to the nurse, "I have to leave now or Sophia will never forgive me."

"Of course, Mike," Rochelle said.

"I hate to run," Dr Kelvin said, "and I know it's not professional, but Rochelle can explain." He handed the charts back to Rochelle and vanished back out the door.

"Sorry," Rochelle said, "Sophia is Mike's daughter, and the only member of his family that made it safe to Corinth. Sophia's eight, so Mike, um, Dr Kelvin, that is, tries to spend as much time with her as possible. Tonight, her class is having a class play and Mike promised to be there."

Ziggy nodded, "I understand." He didn't elaborate, because he couldn't. He couldn't even tell Dillon things, much less a complete stranger. He gave her his best sheepish grin, "About my head, though."

"Huh, oh right," Rochelle said, "I'll be back in a moment with those pain pills. Your teammates should be here soon, Dillon went to get them."

"Oh," Ziggy replied. He leaned back in his bed slightly and closed his eyes, wondering what he could tell his teammates to keep them from getting on his back. Gloating wouldn't work, but he could go for sympathy. Summer and Dr K would go for it, they were _girls_ after all. Scott, Flynn and Dillon would be much harder to convince. Idly, Ziggy wondered if he'd have to do some serious sabotage to get them off his case. Of course, if he asked Dillon to drop it, the Black Ranger would, more than likely. As for Scott and Flynn, and even Summer, he could alert them to the presence of a certain video tape that he had tucked away. The amateur film was too good for Ziggy to risk on anything but a most desperate gambit.

Just then, the door opened and Dillon entered the room, followed by the other three Rangers. Ziggy titled his head slightly, "What, no Dr K?" He asked.

Flynn produced a small computer screen which switched on as it came to rest on his tray table. "Greetings, Series Green," Dr K said.

"Hi, Dr K," Ziggy replied as his eyes flickered between the screen and the solemn faces of his teammates. Quickly he thought out his options, and decided to go for, tossed by security.

"I just want to say," Dillon said, moving to sit in one of the two chairs in the room. "I think you guys are wrong to do this. Ziggy, I'm sure, if there's a problem, you can tell us about it when you're ready."

Ziggy revised his plan to let Dillon be able to stay. "Dillon," Scott said his tone tight, "we can't just let this go."

Ziggy nodded to himself. That was how they were doing this. He considered his options and looked at Flynn, "I'm sorry about the ice cream, Flynn."

"It's all right," Flynn replied. "I had a massive ice cream headache for a while, but I survived. For the record, I'm not totally convinced this is a good idea either."

Ziggy grinned, "You just don't want to sleep on the couch, right?"

"Ziggy," Scott said, sternly.

"Scott," Ziggy replied, mimicking the other man perfectly.

"Now is not the time for this, we need to discuss things," Scott said.

"Now is not the time for this, we need to discuss things," Ziggy repeated, with perfect inflection and tone.

"Stop playing games," Scott growled.

"Stop playing games," Ziggy repeated.

"Ziggy!"

"Scott!"

Ziggy saw Nurse Rochelle open the door as Scott said, "I mean it, Ziggy, stop it!"

"No." Ziggy replied. "No, I won't stop. It is, for the last time, _none of your business,_ as long as it doesn't affect the team, it shouldn't be." He glanced at Rochelle again and saw her eyes harden slightly.

"All right, that's enough," Rochelle announced as she walked through the group. "I have to ask you three to leave; clearly you're harassing this poor young man when he's been through a very traumatic day. We've already agreed that one of you can stay for the night. And…is that transmitting? Get that screen out of here, shut it off now! Can you imagine," Rochelle set a pair of plastic cups on the tray table and lifted Dr K's screen "I don't know who you are, young lady, but honestly, you should know that transmissions in a hospital can upset a variety of machines needed to keep our patients alive and well." She hit the power button and thrust it at the half stunned Scott Truman "leave, now."

With quick words and a dominate personality, Rochelle chased Scott, Flynn and Summer out of the hospital room, and signaled a nearby security to see that they did, indeed, leave. That done, she turned to Dillon, who was watching her admiringly over his book, "Now, I trust that you will continue to be quiet and unobtrusive tonight. I am the head of the night shift for this floor, and I do have the authority to see you escorted from this hospital."

"I'm just sitting here," Dillon said. "Doc K thinks Ziggy might be open to attack right now. It gets me out of the Garage, so I'm happy."

"Good," Rochelle said. "Ziggy, those pills are for you; they're strong and will make you drowsy. Don't fight it. Those three Rangers won't be back here until nine, when visiting hours begin. I'll make sure of that, personally if I have to."

"Thanks," Ziggy replied.

He took his meds while Rochelle left, before he could say anything to Dillon, he slipped into sleep quickly.


	4. Midnight Visitor

Disclaimer: Nothing here belongs to me, except, maybe the girl.

* * *

_The light in the forest was always muted, except where a branch or two had fallen, clearing the way for the sun to fall. The undergrowth was secondary, but sparse enough under the thickly twined tree limbs that there were plenty of mock trails for a courageous child to follow, and the two who ran, giggling, were the bravest two orphans in the Home. He was a curly, brown haired boy who seemed to be all knees and elbows until he started to run. That was when his flailing limbs settled and his feet flew, striking the ground in perfect tempo with his heart. She was a young heart breaker, with auburn curls and bright, blue-green eyes that were lit from within with laughter and joy._

"_Ziggy!" The girl called, "Wake up!"_

Ziggy made the transition from sleep to awake faster than he would have before he'd met Dillon. He stared up at the white, hospital ceiling for a long moment, and then turned his head to the door at the soft sound of a giggle. A waist length cascade of auburn curls framed an oval face defined by haunting, blue-green eyes, sensuous full lips and a straight noise liberally sprinkled with freckles, a face built for smiles of laughter now darkened with worried concern. "Hi," Ziggy said softly.

"Are you all right?" The girl asked, stepping into the room with the unconscious grace and aura of a ballet dancer. An athletically built young woman, with a casual poise and grace that made her look at home in a leotard and tights, with her hair pulled back and the heavier stage make-up, yet allowed her to blend in with a group of teens when she was clad in jeans and a casual t-shirt. Named Jessica Andrews, the young woman who glided across the floor to Ziggy's bed side had been one of the up and coming members of the American Ballet Company before Venjix had sent her fleeing to Corinth like so many others.

"I'm fine," Ziggy replied, "what are you doing here?"

"I came to see you. It's the middle of the night; I figured it would be safe." Jessica said, settling down on the edge of Ziggy's bed; she dropped a one-strap backpack on the floor and kicked off her shoes. "I mean, who would expect you to have visitors besides the Rangers anyway."

"Jess," Ziggy replied slowly, "I don't want to risk anything happening to you."

"Nobody saw me," Jessica replied, "I was careful."

"You can never be too careful," Ziggy replied.

"You're so paranoid, what could possibly happen?" Jessica asked, lightly.

"Venjix," Ziggy replied, as serious as he'd ever been; "and Tanaya 7." He reached out with his good hand, when Jessica took it, he said, "Jess, you're the only family I have. I _can't_ lose you. If Venjix or Tanaya wanted to hurt me, all they'd have to do was hurt you. You bleed, I bleed, remember?"

"I know," Jessica replied, "we promised. Which is why I came here; I couldn't leave you alone in the hospital." She paused, the brightened, "I brought you a few things!" She reached down and pulled up her backpack. "Now, I know you, Ziggy, and I'm sure you haven't told your friends anything, so…" Jessica rummaged around in her bag and produced a black t-shirt, "I brought you another t-shirt!" She declared, holding it up. The front said, _"One by one, the Penguins steal my sanity."_ She turned it around to show the back, which read, _"Grover, Co-Founder, Society for the Protection Against Evil Penguins."_

"Great," Ziggy said, "I lost mine when I left. Thanks for finding me another one."

"Not a problem," Jessica said, folding the shirt and handing it to Ziggy. "I also brought you a sketch pad and pencils. I figured you might be able to pass the time when your teammates aren't here this way."

"Thanks Jess," Ziggy replied. He took the pad and pencil case and put them on his tray table. "I don't think they'll be letting Scott, Flynn and Summer back in for a while, though."

"What did you do?" Jessica asked.

"Why do you automatically think it was something I did?" Ziggy asked.

"Because, they're the _Power Rangers,_ Zig, nobody around here is going to tell them they can or can't do anything. It's in part the gratitude we all feel for you guys handling Venjix, the Grinders, drones and attack 'bots. If there was something I could do for you guys, I'd be there in a heartbeat."

"You taught me shadow puppets," Ziggy pointed out, "it helped me and Dillon become friends."

"What is the deal with Dillon, I mean, he's hot, but at the same time, he's so standoffish, it's incredible." Jessica asked, letting her bag fall to the floor with a soft thud. She turned and leaned back on her arms as she regarded her friend.

"Dillon is, well, Dillon," Ziggy said, with a shrug. He was used to Dillon, and wasn't sure he could explain the broody black ranger to an outsider. "He's not full of warm fuzzies, for sure, but at the same time, he's one of the best people I know. I, well, I trust him. Not that I don't like Scott, Summer and Flynn, but, they're the Trio, they were here before Dillon ever heard of Corinth City and I set out to be a hero or something by getting out of the cartel."

"I'm glad you did."

"Yeah, me too." Ziggy replied. "But still, it's me and Dillon versus the Trio, with Doc K as the referee."

"Who's Doc K?" Jessica asked.

"Dr K invented the Ranger Technology, and she keeps us upgraded to match whatever Venjix is up to. She's, well, she's awesome." Ziggy shrugged his shoulder. "It's hard," he observed, "describing them to you. I mean, I know who Dillon, Dr K, and the Trio are. I, well, I don't understand them, but at the same time, I do. They're, they're my teammates, but, it's like…Jess, I know this sounds weird, but, it's like this power, this bioelectric stuff, it's linking us together. It wants us to be friends, if not family. I don't think the Trio would be who they were on their own, especially since Flynn said something the other day, about how they would have never met anywhere but Corinth. I know that Dillon would have simply wandered in the Wasteland for the rest of what would have been a short life if I hadn't been there. I would have been dead if Benny and Dillon hadn't helped me."

"Ziggy," Jessica said, reaching over to press Ziggy's hand, "You won't betray them if you care for someone else."

"What?" Ziggy asked, he wondered if the pain medication was affecting his thoughts. "What do you mean?"

"You know exactly what I mean, Ziggy. You've never forgotten them, and, even though I've tried, and those shrinks tried, you still blame yourself for someone else's actions. You didn't kill your family, Ziggy."

"I know that," Ziggy replied, tense as he always was when that particular subject came up. "I didn't kill my family."

"You're lying," Jessica said, meeting Ziggy's eyes firmly, blue eyes dark in a rare, serious moment; "don't think I don't know. It's in your eyes. You did nothing wrong."

"My nothing wrong had some pretty permanent costs, Jessica," Ziggy said, a lifetime of bitterness condensed in a single sentence.

Jessica sighed and stood up, and then she sat down with her back to Ziggy and stretched out beside her curly haired fiend. Unsure, Ziggy settled himself under her arm, letting his head come to rest on his best friend's shoulder. "It'll be ok, Zig," Jessica said. "You're a Power Ranger, where ever they are, I' know your parents are incredibly proud of you."

Silence fell for a long moment as both looked for something to say; to avoid what could not be said, yet. Finally, Jessica spoke, "Ziggy, can we win?"

"Of course," Ziggy replied, he half-smiled as he remembered staring into Dr K's eyes as he'd pressed her to find the absolute faith he had learned from the young women before him. "We're the good guys."

"This isn't a comic book," Jessica pointed out, but she smiled, and her eyes twinkled slightly with her returned humor.

"Maybe not," Ziggy said, with a casual shrug, "but I have faith in us being the good guys. Besides, que sera sera, right?"

Jessica took the hint and began to softly sing the song, her smile gentle and her eyes glowing with admiration. Ziggy reached out his good hand as he joined her for the second voice, and she took it with a firm grip that echoed with the memories of a childhood spent exploring both urban and true wilderness with carefree abandon.

Unnoticed by either, the door swung open, revealing the uncompromising visage of Dillon, steaming cup of coffee in a hand frozen on its path to his mouth. As the two on the bed completed their impromptu song, he managed to speak, "What the _hell?"_


	5. The REAL Jessica

Disclaimer; Sorry, not mine.

A/N: Yeah, um, Jessica...she's a Mary Sue, I know, but hey, I think I managed to give her a 'memorable' send off in this, the next to last chapter

* * *

Dillon didn't sleep. This fact was known and accepted by his teammates. They never asked what he did all night, or why he didn't sleep. It was simply an aspect of Dillon that they considered normal. They hadn't meant to assume that Dillon would play bodyguard for Ziggy, in fact, Dillon had volunteered, because he knew that his friend needed the pressure to talk ended. If that meant hearing Ziggy ramble on about…everything, then Dillon would try not to kill him. If it just meant that Ziggy slept all night and Dillon drank really bad coffee, then Dillon would drink really bad coffee.

At least Dr K had managed to slow down the Venjix virus even more, so it wasn't likely that Dillon would go charging through the hospital and destroy it on the word of a computer virus.

Dillon sipped some of the really bad coffee and opened the door to Ziggy's room, expecting it to be quiet and his friend still deeply asleep. To hear Ziggy singing was unexpected, but not totally out of character, but to see the rather lovely brunette singing with him prompted Dillon to speak up, "What the hell?"

The fact that said lovely brunette fell off the bed in shock should not have amused Dillon as much as it did. He hid that amusement behind his indifferent façade, "Dillon!" Ziggy said, "I thought you'd left."

Dillon shook his head, "Just went for some really bad coffee. What is going on here?"

"She's just leaving," Ziggy said as the girl stood up.

"Ziggy…" the girl said.

"No," Ziggy replied emphatically. "You are going to go back home and go to sleep. Now Dillon knows, and that makes it worse. Just go."

"No." The girl said, "I'm not leaving because you're a coward."

"A coward?" Ziggy said, "Jessica, I have a reason, I just don't want to explain. Just, trust me; it's too dangerous for you to even be here."

"Ziggy," Dillon said, "I don't think Venjix is going to start attacking random people. I'm Dillon, by the way."

"Jessica," the girl replied, "Jessica Grover."

"You're related to him? You have my sympathy," Dillon said.

"Thank you," Jessica replied with a slight smile. "And he's right; I'm not a viable target for Venjix."

Ziggy bit his lip, which surprised Dillon, although he was beginning to think that he shouldn't be surprised by anything Ziggy did anymore. "Look," Ziggy said, finally, "I'm just worried about you, Jess, ok."

"That's the only reason I haven't killed you yet," Jessica replied hopping back up on Ziggy's bed.

"So, you two are siblings?" Dillon guessed, moving to sit in a chair.

"Not exactly," Ziggy replied.

"Not by blood," Jessica corrected him. "We grew up in an orphanage together, us two and three others. We were there the longest, and we were best friends. When none of us were adopted, we decided to make our own family and when we turned eighteen, we changed our names."

"Why 'Grover'?" Dillon asked.

"Don't tell him," Ziggy said.

"When we were little, we all loved Sesame Street," Jessica said, grinning at Ziggy, "and Grover was the only character we all agreed that we liked. When we decided to make our own family, we all figured that Grover, being what made us all friends in the first place, was the perfect last name."

Ziggy shook his head, "Don't tell the others," he said, simply, "I'd like to have some dignity intact when it comes to them."

"Zig, you attacked the blue ranger with ice cream," Jessica said, "How much dignity do you think you have?"

"How did you know about that?" Ziggy asked.

"I work right next to the ice cream parlor, I saw you," Jessica said. She bent over and pulled up her backpack, "and we are going to talk." She turned to Dillon, "You can stay or go, I'm just going to torture him for a while."

Dillon smiled, "I'll stay. It's better than dealing with that nurse flirting with me."

"Excellent," Jessica said. She dug in her bag and produced a tape player, setting it on Ziggy's bedside table, she hit play. The room became filled with opera music. "Bellini," Jessica said with a happy sigh, "isn't it beautiful?"

"No." Ziggy said, shortly.

Jessica smiled angelically as she pulled out a pink bag with purple hearts on it. "Now then," she said, "we are going to play house."

"Oh God!" Ziggy groaned.

"And you are going to play the 'mommy,'" Jessica continued.

"Why don't I have a camera?" Dillon said.

Jessica looked at him, and pulled a video camera from her bag, "Here. I want a copy to."

Dillon got up, took the camera and sat back down. In moments he nodded, "I believe we're recording."

"Excellent." Jessica turned back to Ziggy. "Step one, Ziggy. Is what you are worried about related to Venjix?"

"I'm not talking," Ziggy declared, "and Dillon, I swear, stop recording or I will show you just exactly why I _am_ the defender of the Grover Family."

"Shut up," Jessica teased loftily, "because you will smear your makeup."

Ziggy turned back and Dillon saw the look on his face, "Jessica," he said, his voice suddenly far more serious, "I thought you didn't use that brand."

"Why not? I like it," Jessica said.

"You swore a long time ago," Ziggy said.

Jessica laughed, "A child's oath, for a child's time."

Dillon, who was not an expert in common facial expression, did, never the less, understand Ziggy's current facial expression, _'Oh shit, this is gonna hurt.'_

In a move that Dillon knew he hadn't taught Ziggy, the green ranger rolled onto his sore arm and kicked Jessica hard. As Dillon stood, the girl went off the bed with a cry of surprise, and hit the floor. For a brief moment, the beautiful brunette changed into a creature of twisted metal before she leapt to her feet. "I'll get you next time, Grover," she snarled before yanking open the door.

"Lay down," Dillon snapped, dropping the camera on Ziggy's bed. "And call the nurse." He raced after the girl, or newly revealed 'bot, pulling out his engine cell as he did so. In moments, the nurses were treated to the sight of the black ranger chasing a girl down the hall. "Go check on Ziggy," He shouted as he skidded around the nurses' station and headed for the fire stairs, "he's hurt!"

"Ranger Black," Dr K said, "what is going on?"

"Venjix attack 'bot at the hospital," Dillon replied as he flew down the stairs, more in the air than on the ground. "Tried to do something to Ziggy. Be warned, it's got some way of hiding its metal parts; like a, a hologram. I'm in pursuit; we're leaving the hospital now."

"The other Rangers will be there in less than five minutes. Be careful, Ranger Black."

"As careful as I ever am," Dillon replied as he followed the 'Bot through a window in a perfect flying kick.

The 'bot turned and sparred for a few minutes before taking off again. As they hit the street, Summer, Flynn and Scott arrived, "The brunette," Dillon said, diving into the back of Flynn's Hummer. "There!" He pointed. The three took off, but they soon lost her around one of the local night clubs.

"What the hell?" Scott asked as they regrouped.

"Venjix 'bot," Dillon said, sitting on the back of Flynn's Hummer, "she disguised herself as an old friend of Ziggy's. I'm not sure what all tipped him off, but he's the one who made her drop her disguise."

"Let's get back to the hospital," Scott said.

"Negative, Rangers," Dr K replied. "I am in contact with the nurses at the hospital, Ranger Green is fine. He says that he knew she wasn't his friend because of the make up she used. Rangers Red, Blue and Yellow will return to Base and stand by here. Ranger Black, return to the hospital and keep watch. I will contact you if this infiltration 'bot is sighted again."

Dillon walked into Ziggy's room carrying a cup of coffee, which he set down on a table as he approached the green ranger, "Are you ok?" He asked.

"Yeah," Ziggy said, despondently. "I didn't hurt myself worse."

"How did you know she wasn't your friend?" Dillon asked.

"I'm deathly allergic to an ingredient in that brand of make-up." Ziggy replied, "Jessica and Sam swore they'd never use it." He gestured at the camcorder, "Don't destroy that. Dr K will need it to help analyze that 'bot."

"I'll see that she gets it," Dillon replied. "The 'bot got away, but we'll find her. You know that those 'bots can't stay hidden for long, if only because they have to gloat."

Ziggy smiled tiredly, "Yeah," he said softly. "Listen, Dillon, I'm not ready to spill now, but, give me a few days, and I will. Everyone should have heard this a long time ago." Dillon watched his friend settle into bed, and heard as Ziggy whispered, "It'll be nice, to have family again."


	6. The True Story of Ziggy Grover

Disclaimer; Not, not mine, not not mine

A/N: Celebrate! Last Chapter! Ahm, hope you like, this is Ziggy's real story. Oh, and Don't ask me when RPM takes place, because I figured, hey, the world's just ended, who cares about the date. Then I went and gave it a timeline anyway!

* * *

Ziggy took a deep breath as he opened communication with Summer, "This is Summer," Summer said quickly.

"Summer, its Ziggy, and I need a favor." Ziggy said, crossing his fingers.

"What's up?" Summer asked, "aren't you coming home today?"

"We're on our way out of the hospital parking lot," Ziggy confirmed. "Listen, I was wondering if you could get something out of my room."

"What do you need?"

"In my nightstand's top drawer, there is a green leather photo album. Could you bring that down to the kitchen for me, please? There's," he paused, then looked over at Dillon who nodded at him, "there's something I need to tell the team."

"Ok," Summer said, her natural curiosity clearly perked.

"You can look at it if you want," Ziggy added, "it's just, it won't make sense without my explanation."

"Don't worry, Ziggy. We'll be waiting for you."

"Thank you, Summer," Ziggy said.

"Are you sure you're ready for this?" Dillon asked.

"Yeah," Ziggy said, "it's time I talked about this; especially if Venjix is going to try this again."

Silence fell between the two, but it wasn't awkward or tense, it was, in fact, a silence that Ziggy knew well, it was the kind of silence that the Grovers had often found coming between them. It was so familiar, and such an indicator of safety and home to Ziggy, that he actually dozed most of the way back to the Garage instead of fretting over what he was about to do.

Flynn, Scott, Summer and Dr K were waiting in the kitchen, seated around the table. In place of one of the usual mismatched kitchen chairs was Dr K's computer chair, even though Dr K wasn't sitting there. Ziggy let Dillon help him into the chair, before which was his album. "I need one more favor," Ziggy said softly, staring at the book, "Just, let me tell you my story, don't interrupt. It's going to be hard to tell you this as it is, without the added stress of answering questions in the middle of the story."

"Of course," Summer said, looking hard at Flynn and Scott, "I think we can do that." Dr K only nodded, but Ziggy knew he could trust her. Dillon only put a glass of water beside the book and sat down.

Ziggy let his hand rest on the worn leather for a moment before he opened it to the first picture, a family, with a lanky, almost geeky looking man, who had his arm tight around a shorter, plumper man, and four children, two who looked like the lanky man and two like the plump man. "I was born," he said after a moment, "Daniel Lucas Anderson-Zigman. 'Ziggy' was my nickname from a young age for reasons I can't really remember anymore. This is my dad, Larry Zigman, and his partner, Joe Anderson. Joe's sister Katy was my biological mom, as well as my sister, Sara Kaitlyn. Dad's sister, Aunt Heather and Pop were the biological parents to my brothers David and Kyle. Even though we knew our Aunts were our mom, we never called them that. We had Dad and Pop and that was enough for us. When I was five, we lived in New Orleans. I went to Seattle to visit my grandmother and while I was gone, my family vanished during Hurricane Katrina. When I was six, they were all declared dead, and my grandmother suffered a heart attack from the shock. Left on my own, I arrived at St Thomas Orphanage just outside Seattle a true orphan. Within a week, I met Jessica and Sam, who had grown up at the orphanage. We- we all loved Sesame Street, especially Grover, and we bonded over that. I was eight when Kyle came, and he became my roommate. He'd been…hurt…by his family and he was afraid of everybody. I gave him my old stuffed Grover and we became friends for life." Ziggy smiled as he turned the page and let his hand rest on the picture of shy Kyle.

"A year later was when Danny joined us. He'd been taken from his family as well, and with him being the third in our room, Kyle and I began to trust him. It was hard, there were other kids that came and went to new families, but we weren't wanted. Nobody wanted me because I had had two dads, and I was a bit hyper. Jessie was violent, Sam would later be categorized as bi-polar, and Kyle avoided strange adults like the plague. In fact, Jessie and I once attacked a couple who had cornered him. I bit the mom and Jessie kicked the dad in his sweet spot. Danny, well, Danny never talked to anyone but Kyle and I, and even that took some doing. People thought we were too messed up to deal with.

"At thirteen, we went to a group home, all five of us, and we decided that we would be a family; brothers and sisters for life. We chose the name Grover, because that old Muppet had made us all friends in the first place. When we were old enough and we changed our names, I changed mine from Daniel to Ziggy because we all ready had Danny and to help remember my parents. We split up a bit after school; Kyle went into the Coast Guard and was based in Seattle. Danny went with him and became a forensic pathologist. Jessie and Sam went to New York, Jessie to be a ballet dancer, and Sam worked as a secretary to put herself through college and become, well, she wanted to work with stocks. I went down to LA to try my hand at acting and fell in with the Scorpion Cartel. When Venjix attacked, Kyle's ship, the Polar Star, had just left Guam for its return to Seattle. The Star vanished, literally. It went silent one night and vanished from every instrument they had. They said Venjix was in the navigation and had done something, but nobody ever knew what. Danny vanished in the assault on Seattle. Jessie died in New York City. Sam saw her die, and got out. She was just outside the protections when her transport was bombed by drones.

"Sam wrote me a note that I got about Jessie's death, but I couldn't really believe it. Then I started getting letters from Jessie. At first, I thought it was really her, but then, I noticed little things were off. Finally, I went to Colonel Truman and asked him if Jessica Grover was on the confirmed dead list for New York City. He had someone look and she was. Last night, I knew that that 'bot wasn't my Jessie, I just didn't know if she was someone trying to get close for 'other' reasons or an attack bot; at least, not until she pulled out that foundation. I'm highly allergic to certain kinds of make-up, as we learned as kids, and that particular brand would have killed me before the nurses could figure out I was having an allergic reaction."

Ziggy fell silent as he looked at the pictures of a happy childhood, unaware that tears were falling down his cheeks. "It's not…not that I don't trust..." he stopped and took a deep breath, "I trust you guys, it's just, I've already lost two families. I'm not strong enough to love a third."

He stared at the picture from the Grover's official first day as a family, all of them were half hanging off each other with grins that were bigger than any of them normally had used. All of them wore t-shirts with 'Super Grover' logos and jeans, and with their brown hair, ranging from his messy curls to Danny's military crop, they could have been related, cousins even. "Which one's Danny?" Summer asked, startling Ziggy.

"Here," Ziggy said, pointing at his brother. "Jessie and I had put bleach in his leave-in, and then pink hair dye in his gel. He shaved his hair to make sure nobody saw it. His dad was black, and Danny got his hair, but he had his mom's hazel eyes. That's Jessie, she was always dancing. Her grandmother danced in the Russian ballet; at least, that's what Jessie always said. It must have been true, because Jessie was like a leaf, she could float without seeming to move. Sam was just the opposite, clumsy and moody. She hated to dress up as much as Jessie loved it. They were actually born on the same day and were forever insisting that they were twins. We all had our favorite sibling, but at the same time, it was us, we fought for each other and against everybody else. It wasn't anything we promised, we just did it. We used to pretend we were a power ranger team," Ziggy smiled. "Kyle was red, because he was the one who took charge. Danny was blue, Sam was pink, Jessie was silver, actually, and I was green."

"Really?" Scott asked.

"Yeah," Ziggy laughed shakily, "ironic, isn't it." He looked at the pictures, "Last night, Venjix tried to use Jessie against me. If he's done that, he could try it again, with Sam, Danny and Kyle. That's why you guys need to know about them, because I don't know if I can fight my family."

"What about your dads?" Flynn asked.

Ziggy shrugged, "It's been almost twenty years, Flynn, I mean, I loved my dad and pop, and my siblings, but I've mourned them all ready. I did what they would have wanted me to; I found a new family that I could love. The Grovers are too new, too fresh; they're going to be the ones I'll respond to."

"And don't forget," Dillon said, "this new bot used holograms to fool Ziggy. That thing could try to imitate anybody."

"And the only way to detect it is if it drops its hologram," Dr K added.

The alarms went off, and the Rangers rushed to the view screen, except Ziggy, who was curled up and rocking slightly after his jump jarred his shoulder. "There's the 'bot," Scott said. "Let's go."

Ziggy turned, "I can't morph yet," he told them, "can you guys handle this without me?"

"We can," Scott said. "You just focus on healing."

As the cars raced from the Garage, Ziggy reflected that it was like before he'd become a Ranger, and he hated that. He was a Ranger; he could help, but not like this. Instead, he followed Dr K into the training room, pushing the computer chair, and settled behind her to watch.

It was an unequal fight, and the Rangers needed him, but Ziggy knew he couldn't go. Besides, Dr K had his engine cell to make sure he didn't try anything stupid. "I hate this," Ziggy muttered.

Dr K sighed, "I didn't plan on doing this, but Venjix's bot has made it necessary." She walked into her control room and came back out with what looked to Ziggy like a metal tube. "Just hold still," she said as she approached him.

"Hey Doc, you aren't going to kill me are you?" Ziggy asked.

"No." Dr K replied and slammed the tube into his neck, "And DO NOT call me Doc."

There was a hiss of air as pain shot through Ziggy's neck, and he yelled, "Ah, Jesus, Mary and Joseph! What the hell was that?"

"A hypospray loaded with a healing accelerant made for the Rangers. Go ahead and head on over to the battle, there's a military jeep parked outside, keys in, that you can use. Just, try to avoid the cows this time."

Ziggy paused in his run, "Cows?"

"Not now, go!" Dr K ordered.

Ziggy shook his head and ran from the room to help out his friends.

That night, as the five Rangers slept, Dr K pulled up a video she'd managed to get from the dome cameras. This time, she ignored the sight of Ziggy avoiding the cow only to blow out, and focused on him being thrown from the jeep. She slowed the image down frame by frame as the Ranger clearly tried to take control of his flight. Instead, he tumbled in the air, and then was surrounded by green light for five seconds before he vanished and reappeared on the soft ground close to the river, hitting the ground with enough force to become injured, but not killed as he should have been. After a moment, Dr K rewound the tape and watched again, frustration and fear welling up as she tried to figure out how Ziggy had saved his life. "This was not programmed," she whispered to herself as he vanished again.


End file.
